FA CUP 3rd ROUND: The Striker previews the FA Cup third round opener on Friday between SWINDON TOWN v MAN CITY with a recommended BETDAQ bet.

SWINDON TOWN V MANCHESTER CITY

8pm It’s an FA Cup weekend as the Third Round kicks off on Friday night. We open the weekend with Swindon Town hosting Manchester City on BETDAQ Betting Exchange, with the away side heavy odds on favourites to beat the League Two side. The Premier League side will of course be expected to win here, but Swindon are having a decent season in League Two. They sit in 5th at the moment, and granted there is plenty of sides in the mix for the Playoff places, they have nothing to lose by “having a go” at the Premier League Champions here.

Although Swindon are having a good season, it’s hard to look past the obvious gulf in class here. Manchester City could play their second XI and still cover the handicap. It’s very difficult to see past a City win, and seeing them trade as short as 1.22 is pretty understandable. It’s probably a case of how many goals can City score rather than will they win. City have been fantastic this season, and with Chelsea and Liverpool drawing last weekend they opened a ten point gap at the top of the Premier League.

Of course, the FA Cup Third Round won’t start without drama. It seems a little unfair that VAR will be used at the Premier League grounds and not outside. That leaves only nine of the 32 games with VAR. The FA have defended this, saying only Premier League grounds have the license and the costs involved. To be honest, I would probably just not use VAR if it couldn’t be used in every game – that seems the fairest option to me.

Swindon Town had a pretty big gap in December due to Covid19, much like a lot of clubs around England. Not many avoided missing games. Pep Guardiola has tested positive in the build-up to this fixture, so City will be without their manager. At the time of writing, they had 14 backroom staff and seven first-team players isolating – so perhaps there is a doubt about this fixture. We could see some big movement on the team news too, so watch out for that from a trading point of view.

Obviously this is a game for small stakes to start the FA Cup weekend, but it’s a fascinating situation nonetheless. The Covid19 situation at City could give Swindon a decent chance, and it could also mean the game is postponed! I feel without Guardiola and his assistant, and without some key City players we could see a little disjointed performance from City. Swindon should be able to keep the score line respectable, and Any Other Away Win (Man City to score four or more goals and win) is worth laying at around 2.85 in the Correct Score market.

The Striker Says:
One point lay (liability) Any Other Away Win at 2.85 with BETDAQ BETTING EXCHANGE.

You can view all markets here -> https://bit.ly/BDQSwiMci

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